Improvement in horse hay-forks



. which terminates in an eye, B.

i a lever or arm, F. shank at a.

. is as follows: of hay by the eye B to a pulley, the fork isV 4UNITEIJSTATES VALTER W. MOORE,

or MANTUA, onro.

IMPROVEMENT IN HORSE HAY-FORKS.

Speo'i `ation. forming part of Letters Patent No. 146,542, dated January20, 1874; application filed September 8, 1373.

of Mantua, in the eounty of Portage and State of Ohio, have invented acertain new and Improved Hay-Fork, 'of which the following is a clearand complete description, reference being had to the acooinpaningdrawings making part of the same.

Figures l and 3 are views of the fork when shut. y Fig. 2 is a Viewofthe fork when open.

. Like letters of reference refer to like parts in the several views.

The nature of this invention relates to a hay-fork; and it has `for itsobject the unloading of hay by the use of a horse attached thereto bythe intervention ot ropes and pulleys.

The construction and operation oi' said-fork are as follows: A is ashank, the upper end of To the lower end is pivoted a pair of arms, C D.The outer ends of the arms are rounded and brou'ght to a sharp edge, asshown in Fig. 2, which, on being closed together, as shown in Fig. 3,shut by each other as a pair. of shears, forming a blunt but sharpcutting end to the shank A.

To each of the arms is pivoted one end of a link, E, the upper end ofwhich is pivoted to Said arm is pivoted to the The operation of theabove-described fork It is suspended over the load drawn down to theload, and in the position `shown in Figs. l and ifi-the arms O D beingsed, the arm F resting against the side of -he shank A, and the pivot bbeing back of .pivot a, thus locking the arms G D against any tendencyto open by being pressed down- Ward-is thrust down into the hay. Whentherein the arms O D are expanded, as shown in Fig. 2, by pulling upwardon the lever or arm F until the pivoted point b passes back of thepivoted point a., thereby bringing the line of draft of gravity on theopposite side ot' said point a., in which position it is retained by theupper end of the arm Fresting against the side of the shank, as shown inFig. 2, under which is theboW `of the trip G. The fork thus loaded islifted by the pulleys, and, by certain arrangements, conveyed over thebay, into which the hay is dropped from the fork by pulling upon `theend H ofthe trip G, which will force the arm F back from the shank sofar asto bring the line of gravity outside the point a.. The weight ofthe hay will close the arms O D together and allow the hay to drop ott'.VThe position of the pivots a and b, above described, looks the armstogether, and the fork is nowreturned to the load of hay, and theoperation again repeated, as before. In consequence of the sharp ent-`ting ends of the arms O D, the fork is easily forced into the hay, asit will readily' cut its Way down. On expanding the arms, the links, bytheir outward movement, press the hay together, rendering it. compaet,so that it will lodge upon the arms with more security than y if the haywere free and loose.

